


A Need For Change

by Katophoenix



Series: Umbrella's Legacy - A REwrite [1]
Category: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse)
Genre: Bonding, Canon Compliant, Female Friendship, Gap Filler, Gen, Platonic Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-12 11:22:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29009742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katophoenix/pseuds/Katophoenix
Summary: Jill watched her, studying her expressions. She wasn't the only one sensing the foreboding air. She tapped the edge of her cup idly before placing it into the sink beside her. It's clank caught Rebecca's attention."I'm thinking of cutting my hair," She crossed her arms.
Relationships: Rebecca Chambers & Jill Valentine
Series: Umbrella's Legacy - A REwrite [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2128152
Comments: 4
Kudos: 4





	A Need For Change

The faint aroma of coffee filled the homely kitchen. The evening sunlight crept in through the vinyl slats in the window. Jill brought the cooling mug to her lips. The simple beverage was a godsend. It had been nearly a month and a half since the night plagued with near-death experiences. The event had put the ordinary aspects of life into perspective and she vowed to enjoy the simplicities of it more often.

Unfortunately, with the ever-present threat of Umbrella hanging over the remaining S.T.A.R.S.’s heads, the simplicities of life were fairly limited. With the newspapers and official documents chalking the night up to incompetence and alcohol abuse, there was very little left for them to do. At least, that was the case until Chris had made her aware of his findings. Then the wheels began to turn.

A knock at the door spurred Jill from her thoughts. Her head snapped towards it. Her eyes narrowed as her hand glided towards the firearm on her thigh. Her other hand sat the cup back onto the counter softly so as not to make a sound. With cautious footfalls, she snuck to the entrance. What was once a comfortable silence was now a tense one as visions of Umbrella secret ops invading her home slipped into her mind’s eye. The logical mind attempted to reason that if they were here to assassinate her, they wouldn’t be knocking on the front door.

The reasoning lingered as she approached, slowly leaning closer to peer through the peephole. She almost laughed at herself as the sight of Rebecca awkwardly shuffling came into view. The poor girl was likely beginning to think she wasn’t home. With an inviting smile, she opened the door.

“Hey, come in,” She nodded her head inwards. Rebecca quickly scooted into the home allowing Jill to glance behind her for anything suspicious. With the coast looking clear she shut the door behind them, visibly relaxing.

“Little on edge, huh?” She spoke softly as she placed her belongings beside her desk. Her motions were stiff as if not quite used to doing so, but relaxed enough to suggest she was growing used to it.

“You could say that,” She paused, glancing between the kitchen and her. “Would you like anything to drink?”

"God, yes." She shuffled closer to join Jill in the kitchen, "I've been running around like a chicken with my head cut off getting everything ready."

Jill pulled a recently washed cup from her drying rack. She was thankful she had done a bit of cleaning, despite the fact, everything was still cluttered. Rebecca didn't need to see what a stressed Jill Valentine environment looked like in full force. She spoke with gentleness as she poured the coffee. "Nervous?"

"A bit," She smiled sheepishly, "But I've always wanted to travel."

"If that's the case..." She began, handing her the cup. "I'll have to take you vacationing with me sometime."

She softened up, her eyes crinkling. "Careful, I may just hold you to that."

Silence returned to the apartment space. The vibrant evening light dimmed leaving the fluorescent bulbs to take over. The sound of occasional sips and the hum of her appliances filled the air. She knew this feeling well, the calm before the storm. Rebecca was a strong woman despite her age, having already survived two nights of hell. Jill trusted her to return from the Cove alive. Her intuition was sharp, but that didn't mean there was no cause for worry.

"Think you'll be alright here?" Rebecca's voice cut through her thoughts.

"As long as I can suppress the urge to strangle Irons," Her expression warmed after her facetious comment, "You don't need to worry, just focus on coming back to us in one-piece."

She hummed in response, lightly nodding her head as her eyes glossed over the flooring. Jill watched her, studying her expressions. She wasn't the only one sensing the foreboding air. She tapped the edge of her cup idly before placing it into the sink beside her. It's clank caught Rebecca's attention. 

"I'm thinking of cutting my hair," She crossed her arms, "what do you think? Bob cut? Pixie? Mohawk?"

"Mohawk, a hundred percent," She couldn't help but chuckle in her answer, "I could cut it, you know?"

"Rebecca, I love you, but I'm not letting you give me a mohawk." She grinned, her tone conveying the playful nature of her words.

"You know I'm not going to do that, even though you could pull it off." She returned with her own snark, "Maybe a bob instead?"

Jill hummed, abling over to the nearby washroom, Rebecca in tow. She glanced over herself in the worn mirror. She turned side to side, pulling her hair back to simulate the look. She watched as Rebecca peered over her shoulder, giving the look a secondary inspection. For a moment they were quiet. Simply staring at the mirror intently. Then they both hummed in unison, breaking out into laughter together.

"I like the concept," Jill began, the laugh echoing in her voice. "But I don't know..."

"Well, why not..." She began, shuffling around to her side proper. Carefully, she took her hair from her hold. She didn't do much to tweak it. The general shape of a bob remained, changed only by the addition of an asymmetrical adjustment. One side slightly longer than the other, with the shorter side tucked behind her ear.

"I see you have an eye for style," she looked from her reflection to her newly found stylist. "Ah fuck it, let's do it."

"How did I know you were going to say that?" She watched as she left, listening to the muffled sound of a drawer opening.

"You say that like I'm impulsive..." The drawer closed as quickly as it had been opened.

"More like I'm starting to learn your tastes," She frowned lightly as she returned with a regular pair of scissors, "No shears?"

"Unfortunately," She handed them off before taking a seat on the tub's edge. "I can't say this is something I do often."

"That's fair," She sat behind her. With a swift glance, she looked around the room, spotting a small trash can and pulling it closer. "You alright if I use this?"

"Go ahead," She encouraged, mentally noting that she already needed to sweep the room regardless. 

"Now, before we begin, technically, you should wash your hair, or at the very least wet it." She explained, idly combing her fingers through Jill's hair. It was soft.

In response she twisted around, breaking Rebecca from her activity. She stretched up, propping her knee up momentarily to reach the showerhead. It only gave a moderate level of resistance before coming free and detaching itself from the holder. She handed it off to her before resettling back into position. The room felt oddly cozy at that moment as she removed her top. No Umbrella, no viruses, no danger. Just two girls on a small bathtub playing hair stylists.

"Do you have a temperature preference?" She asked, adjusting the knobs.

"Warm is good."

Rebecca held her hand against the showerhead. With a few more turns the water felt an acceptable level of 'warm'. Jill seemed to get the hint when she ran her fingers through her hair again. She leaned over, letting her hair dangle over the tub. She likely didn't need to be so gentle as she brushed the water in. It was relaxing. The repetitive action seemed to wash away her worries in that moment.

"Shit."

"What?" She asked, stilling her movements.

"I don't have a towel." Jill chuckled in amusement at herself.

"Where do you keep them?" She asked, turning the taps off and standing up.

"There should be a clean one on my bed."

She nodded, returning the showerhead to it's home and leaving the room. That feeling of being welcome but not quite used to the home returned as she stepped back into the kitchen. She wandered around the wall separating the two rooms. The muffled sound of water hitting porcelain added to the atmosphere as she listened to Jill ringing out her hair. It mixed with the distant inner city ambience floating in from the open windows. The desk fan nearby attempted to ruffle her clothing as she grabbed a towel splayed across her bed.

Cool light caught her eye when she turned around. The overhead light above her corkboard highlighting the intensive work she had been doing. Her eyes followed the various notes and photos attached to the map. It made sense why Jill was staying behind. It wasn't just due to Rebecca's knowledge in virology being a key component required for the mission. Well, that was a hefty part she couldn't deny, but Jill was on to something here.

She snapped herself from her thoughts and growing nerves.

"Here you are," She passed the towel into Jill's outstretch palm once she entered the room. "Now onto the fun part."

"It's been a while since I've had short hair," She wrapped the towel around her shoulders, pulling all the wet strands above it. "I'm a little excited."

"Well, you're in good hands."

"Don't I know it," Jill spoke almost to herself. The confidence that laced her words made pride swell in Rebecca's stomach. She couldn't help but grin as she laced a section of hair between her middle and index fingers. 

The snipping of her scissors bounced off the cold tiles. Its rhythm was choppy at its start before she settled into an efficient groove. Chunks of hair filled the can beside her but that didn't stop several loose stragglers from falling practically everywhere around them. It was almost like glitter but easier to clean afterwards.

"It seems like you've done this before," She mused aloud.

"Mm, sort of," Rebecca answered, "I used to cut my mom's bangs when they got too long. It saved her a trip to the hairdresser."

"And now you're in your friend's bathroom, helping cut off her hair on a whim."

"I'd say it's a splendid use of my skills." She smiled as Jill laughed in return. It was a welcomed sound, something she hoped to hear more often.

They basked in the comfortable stillness that followed. Listening to the snipping of the scissors, feeling each other's warmth in the brisk bathroom. She pulled back upon finishing the final cut, admiring her work. Jill pulled the towel from her shoulders allowing her to brush off the excess. Well, as much excess as she could get, the persistent little bastards. Once finished she watched as Jill stood, returning to the mirror.

"Perfect," She praised, listening as Rebecca moved to join her.

She admired the look, the fine cuts that didn't scream beginner at all. Despite being so young, no one could deny that Rebecca was both skilled and talented. She was barely an adult and yet she had so much to give, knew so much, and lived through so much trauma. And now? Now she was about to plunge headfirst into a risky situation all over again. So much could go wrong, it could become Arklay all over again.

Jill looked over to her, those worries of what could be swirling in her mind’s eye. Thankfully, she had a decent poker face. She didn't want Rebecca to pick up on her overthinking, she had enough to be anxious about. Especially since said girl was staring at her with nothing but pride. She didn't want to sour their last meeting. She didn't want this to be their last meeting at all. She didn't deserve anything Umbrella had caused them. She had half a mind to pull her close and keep her there. She rose her hand, almost doing exactly that. She stopped herself, opting to firmly grab her shoulder.

"Be careful, alright? You and that smart head of yours better come back in one piece." She emphasized her words, sincerity radiating from her.

She expected a brave face. A thumbs up she picked up from Chris or an assured nod. In hindsight, it wasn't too unexpected when she received a hug instead. A hug that squeezed the air from her. A hug that was desperately needed. Without missing a beat she wrapped her own arms around her with similar strength.

"You stay safe, too," she commanded, muffled by Jill's shoulder.

"I will."

**Author's Note:**

> So, to start, I'm going to lay down some facts to get us all on the same page.
> 
> One: This is platonic in the grand scheme of my REwrite, however, this can be viewed as a romantic one-shot. I do like the Jill/Rebecca (Chambertine) ship and lord knows I love sapphic undertones. Hell, even in my REwrite this could be seen as a one-sided crush on Rebecca's part. I might even explore that in the future.
> 
> Two: This one-shot can be read as part of my series or as a stand-alone. The main purpose was to explore the space in-between RE1 & 3 and some bonding we haven't gotten to see on-screen/on paper. In the grand scheme of my rewrite, I wanted to start simple with a nice ease-in. Something to explore familiar ground and tie-in multiple canons like the rest of the series will do. (I.e. OG RE1, the books, and both RE1 & RE3 Remakes)
> 
> Three: This series is an alternate timeline that draws from both canon material (including books, as I am alluding to S.D. Perry's Caliban Cove in this) as well as the potential of what could be. Expect things to go off canon's rails following CVX's ending. Even though RE4+ will be practically thrown out and/or reworked, I will be keeping characters introduced in them. You may even see similar plots but under a much different environment or characters.
> 
> Side Note: Ignore if Jill's bathroom doesn't have a tub or showerhead. I tried getting references of her apartment layout online and well I got most of it, I didn't see anything in her bathroom beyond the sink area. I'm too lazy to reinstall the game to look. So now she has a bathtub and detachable showerhead.
> 
> Thank you for reading! <3


End file.
